Rotary engine.



PATENTED JUNE 20, 1905.

G. G. PROBERT. ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLICATION FILED MAY 18,1904.

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No 792,614. PATENTED JUNE 20, 1905.

- G. G. PROBERT. I

ROTARY ENGINE.

APPLIOATION FILED MAY 18,1904.

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UNITED STATES Patented June 20, 1905.

GEORGE G. PROBERT, OF NATIONAL MILITARY HOME, KANSAS.

ROTARY ENGINE.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 792,614, dated June 20,1905.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, GEORGE G. PROBERT, a citizen of the United States,residing at Na tional Military Home, in the county ofLeavenworth andState of Kansas, have invented certain new and useful Improvements inR0- tary Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to improvements in rotary engines propelled bysteam, water, gas, or other fluid; and one of my objects is to gain thefull efficiency of the fluid-pressure by applying it to the piston ofthe engine in the most direct manner instead of permitting it to loseits force by pursuing a tortuous path before and when acting on saidpiston.

A further obj eet is to provide simple means for reversing the motion ofthe piston.

The essential features of the invention consist in two members, one ofwhich is stationary and has communicating inlet, bypass, and exhaustports, while the other acts as a rotary piston and has a series ofconcentrically arranged grooves communicating with the bypass ports,said grooves having transverse heads against which the fluid impingeswhen propelling the piston.

Another feature of the invention resides in the peculiar manner in whichfriction is reduced to a minimum between the stationary member and therotating piston.

Other features of the invention will hereinafter appear, and in orderthat it may be fully understood reference will now be made to theaccompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 represents a horizontal sectionof the invention, taken on line I I of Fig. 3. Fig. 2 is a plan view ofthe stationary disk forming part of the invention. Fig. 3 is atransverse section of the engine, taken on line III III of Fig. 1. Fig.4 is an irregular section of the reversing-valve and one of thebypasses, taken on line IV IV of Fig. 1. Fig. 5 is an irregular brokentransverse section of the stationary disk, taken on line V V of Fig. 1,showing one of the by-pass ports communicating with the exhaust-port.Fig. 6 is a detail perspective view of the reversing-valve Fig. 7 is avertical transverse section of a modification of the engine, wherein thefluid acts on both sides, and the periphery of the piston, taken on lineVII VII of Fig. 8. Fig. 8 is a broken irregular section of the same,taken on line VIII VIII of Fig. 7, showing theby-passes through whichcommunication is established between the groove in the periphery of thepiston and the side grooves thereof.

The stationary member of the engine is preferably arranged in the formof a disk 1, provided at its top and bottom portions withcentrally-disposed bosses 2 and 3 and at one side with a peripheral boss4, through which latter a tapering valve-seat 5 extends to within ashort distance of the center of the disk and communicates with aninlet-port 6, extending to the outer end of boss 3, which latter isthreaded for the reception of the threaded end of a supply-pipe 7,leading from a boiler or other source from which fluid under pressure isconducted.

8 8 8 8 designate a series of by-passes communicating at their oppositeends with one side of va ve-seat 5 and the upper surface of disk 1. 9 99 9 designate a series of similar by-passes communicating with theopposite side of the valve-seat 5 and the upper side of the disk. Theby-passes gradually increase in area toward the periphery of the diskfor a purpose hereinafter described, and the two larger ones communicatewith a centrally-disposed exhaust-port 10, leading from the lower sideof the disk, as shown in Figs. 3 and 5.

The passage of fluid through the by-passes is controlled by thereversing-valve 11, comprising a tapering plug 12, which snugly fitswithin valve-seat 5, a conical-formed portion 13 for closing the outerend of the valve-seat, a triangular portion 14, connecting the outer endof the plug to the conical-formed portion 14, and a handle 15, securedto the latter for operating the plug. Plug 12 is provided at itsopposite sides with grooves 16 17, inclined in opposite directions, asshown in Figs. 2 and 4, and gradually increasing in width toward theouter end of the plug in order to correspond with the bypasses.

Disk 1 is provided with peripheral lugs 18 for the reception of screwsor bolts whereby it is secured to a suitable foundation when the engineis in use.

The rotary member of the engine preferably consists of a disk or piston19 of the same diameter as the disk 1, upon which latter it is looselymounted, the piston being provided with a centrally-disposed counterbore20 for the reception of boss 2. The lower side of the piston bearsagainst the upper side of the disk and is provided with a series ofconcentric grooves 21 21 21 21 which register with the by-pass portsand, like the latter, gradually increase in size toward the periphery ofthe piston. Each groove is closed by a transverse head 22 22 22 22,arranged on different sides of the axis of the piston, as shown in Fig.1, in order to balance the latter when the fluid impinges against saidheads and also prevent the latter from simultaneously reaching thepractically dead point between the adjacent sides of the by-pass ports,where the fluid exerts but slight pressure upon the transverse heads,owing to the fact that the greater portion of said fluid passes throughthe by-passes at said point.

Motion is transmitted to the load from. the piston through a stub-shaft23, extending upwardly from the latter.

In practice the piston is rotated from left to right by turning valve 11to the position shown in Fig. 1. This permits the fluid entering port 6to flow through the innermost groove 16, thence through by-pass 8, andinto groove 21 of the piston, which latter is rotated by impact of thefluid against transverse head 22. After said head passes port 9 thegreater portion of the fluid flows down.- wardly therethrough into thecommunicating groove 17, thence through by-pass 8 into groove 21,impinging against head 22 until the latter passes by-pass 9*, where thelarger portion of the fluid flows down into the communicating groove 17,thence out through by-pass 8 into groove 21 impinges against head 22until the same passes bypass 9", where the larger portion of the fluidflows into groove 21 through by-pass 9 thence through communicatinggroove 17 and by-pass 8, from which latter it flows through by-pass 9into the communicating groove 17 and escapes through the exhaustport 10as head 22 passes by-pass 9 The motion of the piston can be readilyreversed by turning the valve 1 1 a one-half revolution, which bringsgroove 16 in communication with the by-passes.

From the above description it will be understood that the fluid pursuessubstantially a continuous course uninterrupted by sharp curves from thetime of entering the grooves of the cylinder until it leaves the same,and as said grooves gradually increase in crosssection the fluid willnot be retarded to the same extent by friction as it progresses towardthe exhaust-port, and consequently will exert about equal pressure onhead 22 as on head 22.

It is obvious that the fluid in the grooves of the piston will exert anupward pressure on the latter and. tend to raise it from the disk; butin practice this tendency is counteracted by the load, which is arrangedto exert a downward pressure through the instrumentality of worm orother gearing. (Not shown.) Means for lubricating the adjacent sides ofthe piston and the disk are unnecesssary, as the lifting action of thefluid on the piston will prevent the latter from bearing too heavily onthe disk, and more or less moisture from the fluid will be forced by thelatter between the contacting sides, thereby reducing the frictioncreated by same to a minimum.

While I have shown the engine arranged in a horizontal position, it isobvious that it will operate equally as well in any other position.

In the modification shown in Figs. 7 and 8 piston 19 is inclosed in acasing 1 and pro vided on one side with grooves 21 to 21, a peripheralgroove 21, and a groove 21 on its opposite side, which communicates withan exhaust-port 1.0 leading from one side of the casing. Groove 21communicates with an inlet-port 6, while groove 21 communicates withperipheral groove 21 through a by-pass 9 in the lower portion ofthecasing. Communication is established between the peripheral groove 21and the exhaust-port 1O through a by-pass 9 arranged in the casing.

In the modification just described the reversing-valve is omitted, as itis intended that the piston shall travel in but one direction. Theconstruction shown in Figs. 1. and 2 may also be modified by omittingthe reversingvalve, in which case but one set of by-passes will beemployed, having ports in the top of the disk arranged like those shownin Fig. 2.

While I have shown and described the inletport communicating with theaxis of the disk and the exhaust-port located near the peripherythereof, the position of said ports may of .course be reversed, inwhich. case grooves Will be the larger of the series and groove thesmaller, while the by-passes will be arranged to correspond therewith.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim, and desire to secureby Letters Patent, is-

1. A rotary engine having a stationary member provided with by-passesand inlet and exhaust ports communicating with a number of theby-passes, a rotary member having grooves for establishing communicationbetween the by-passes, and heads extending across the grooves.

2 A rotary engine having a stationary member provided with by-passes andinlet and exhaust ports communicating with a number of the by-passes, arotary member having concentric grooves for establishing communicationbetween the by-passes, and heads extending across the grooves.

3. A rotary engine having a stationary member provided withobliquely-arranged by-passes and inlet and exhaust ports communicatingwith a number of the by-passes, a rotary member having grooves forestablishing communication between the by-p asses, and heads extendingacross the grooves.

4. A rotary engine having a stationary member provided with by-passesand inlet and exhaust ports, a rotary member having concentric groovesfor establishing communication between the by passes, said bypasses andconcentric grooves gradually increasing in cross-section as theyapproach the exhaust-port, and heads extending across the grooves.

5. Arotary engine having a stationary disk provided at one side withinlet and exhaust ports and at its opposite side with a series ofby-passes one of which communicates with the inlet-port while anothercommunicates with the exhaust-port, a piston rotatably mounted on theside of the disk adjacent to the by passes provided with concentricgrooves for establishing communication between the latter, and headsextending across the grooves.

6. A rotary engine having a stationary member provided with avalve-seat, by-passes communicating therewith and inlet and exhaustports also communicating with the valve-seat, a reversing-valve arrangedin the valve-seat for controlling the direction of the fluid through theby-passes and establishing communication between two of the latter andthe inlet and the exhaust ports, arotary member mounted on thestationary member and provided with grooves for establishingcommunication between the by-passes, and heads extending across thegrooves.

7. A rotary engine having a stationary member provided with avalve-seat, by-passes communicating therewith and inlet and exhaustports also communicating with the valve-seat, a reversing-valve arrangedin the valve-seat provided at its opposite sides with oblique groovesextending in opposite direc tions for controlling the direction of thefluid through the by-passes and establishing communication between twoof the latter and the inlet and the exhaust ports, a rotary membermounted on the stationary member and provided with grooves forestablishing communication between the by-passes, and heads extendingacross the grooves.

In testimony whereof I afiix my signature in the presence of twowitnesses.

GEORGE G. PROBERT.

Witnesses:

LESLIE E. BAIRD, F. G. Frsorrnn.

